Systems and methods for providing a knitting needle

ABSTRACT

Some implementations of the described invention relate to a knitting needle. While this first knitting needle can have any suitable characteristic or component, in some cases, it defines a groove that extends longitudinally along a length of the knitting needle. In some cases, the groove opens near a point end (or distal end) of the first needle. Thus, in some cases, a tip of a second knitting needle can run through the groove, such that the tip of the second needle is able to readily pass under a portion of yarn (or other material) that is on the first knitting needle. In some cases, a proximal end of the knitting needle comprises an object that is wider than a width of a shaft of the needle. In some cases, the described knitting needle is coupled with another needle via a non-resilient coupler. Other implementations are described.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationSer. No. 62/551,996, filed Aug. 30, 2017, and entitled SYSTEMS ANDMETHODS FOR PROVIDING A KNITTING NEEDLE (Attorney Docket No. 27210.2),which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.

FIELD

Some implementations of the described invention relate to a knittingneedle. While this knitting needle can have any suitable characteristicor component, in some cases, it defines a groove that extends along atleast a portion of a length (or a longitudinal axis) of the knittingneedle. In some cases, the groove opens near a point end of the firstneedle. Thus, in some cases, a point of a second knitting needle can runthrough a groove in a first knitting needle, allowing the point of thesecond needle to pass under a portion of yarn (or other material) thatis on the first knitting needle.

BACKGROUND

There are a variety of material choices for knitting needles. A knittermay choose the size, length, and shape of a needle. Additionally,knitters may choose a set of needles that are pointed at both ends,which (when worked together) may be used to knit small circularprojects.

Unfortunately, the explosion of knitting needle choices has not solvedsome of the biggest problems reported by knitters, both old and young.As one example of such a problem a problem which frustrates experiencedknitters and keeps some new knitters from continuing it can be difficultto create even tension consistently. In this regard, the term eventension (and variations thereof) may refer to a knitting process (or aknitted material) in which each stitch or loop receives substantiallythe same amount of yam. An example of a knitted material 10 havingstitches with substantially even tension is shown in FIG. 1A.

One possible problem with many conventional knitting techniques is thatof uneven tension. Some instances of uneven tension include, but are notlimited to: oversized stitches that look like gaps or holes in theknitted material 10 (see e.g., FIG. 1B) next to small tight stitches inthe same row, guttering 15 between rows (or larger than normal spacesbetween rows visible on the back side of the knitted material) (seee.g., FIG. 1C), rowing out (or rows of stitches that stand out on thefront side of the knitted material) (see e.g., FIG. 1D), puckering ofstitches due to yarn splitting 25 (see e.g., FIG. 1E), having a piece ofknitting that changes from tight to loose over a length of the project,having finished projects that either take much more or much less yarnthan what is suggested by a pattern, having a failed project that doesnot fit as intended, and having a knitted stockinette pattern (or onerow of knit stitches followed by one row of purl stitches, repeated)that rolls or curls violently from either the sides or the bottom.

Tension problems are often so ubiquitous that over the years many tricksor methods have been passed around hoping to mitigate such problems.Some examples of such methods include the following techniques that weretaken from several popular knitting blogs: 1) Never knit the stockinettepattern. Instead, choose a similar pattern that disguises the differencein tension between the knit stitch and the purl stitch. 2) Never purl orpurl backwards. 3) Always knit in the round. 4) Pick yarns to hide anyflaws. 5) Teach your hands to adjust, specifically to loosen whicheverstitch is tight and/or tighten whichever stitch is loose. 6) Usedifferent sized needles, one for knit stitches and one for purlstitches. (Many knitters, when knitting a stockinette pattern resort toadding a ribbed border in order to force the stockinette pattern to layflat rather than t roll up. This roll is the result of uneven tensionbetween garter stitches and purl stitches). In the end, each of theseproposed methods has its limitations, and none of them is a perfectsolution.

Currently, tension (which should generally be applied to the yarn whenknitting) is often managed by a knitter's hands. This tension helpsto: 1) keep the yarn in position in order to form a stitch, 2) hold theyarn around the needle as the next stitch is created, 3) determine thesize of each stitch, and/or 4) provide other necessary assistance to aknitter. While controlling tension can be important, it can also beuseful to vary the tension of the yarn slightly as the knitter knits,

There are a myriad of ways for a knitter to hold and tension the yarn.Some common methods usually involve bringing the new yarn from itssource to the palm, up between the fingers at a point next to the palm,and wrapping the yarn around one of the fingers, and finally ending upon the top of the first finger. In this regard, the first finger is usedto direct the yarn onto the needle. The purpose of this “winding” aroundthe fingers is to put tension on the yarn.

As a general rule, there are at least two basic stitches when knitting:the knit stitch and the purl stitch. The knit stitch begins at a frontof the loop and the purl stitch begins at a back of the loop. A stitchis created when the knitter slides the working needle (in the right (ordominant) hand, in some cases) under the right (or other) leg andthrough the center of the stitch or loop on the resting needle (in theleft hand (or recessive hand, in some such cases)) then wraps newworking yarn (from the ball of yarn) around the point of the workingneedle and finally brings that yarn back under the stitch or loop,thereby creating a new stitch that is then transferred to the workingneedle. In some cases, knitters report a difference in the length ofyarn used between a knit stitch and a purl stitch. In some cases,knitters also disagree over which stitch is tighter and which stitch islooser, and to be fair, the difference may lie in the hands of eachspecific knitter. Tensioning the yarn is often considered to be thenumber one skill required to create an evenly knitted fabric. In somecases, minor changes in how the yarn is held and apportioned whileknitting can lead to major disruptions in tension. Additionally, thereare other forces at work which can also lead to uneven tension.

As another problem, some conventional methods for knitting are prone toallow yarn splitting. In this regard, if the knitter, when trying toslide the working needle 30 under the right (or another) leg and throughthe center of the stitch or loop on a resting needle 35, accidentlypierces and goes through the yarn on the resting needle, the yarn 40 issplit or a yarn splitting 25 occurs (see e.g., FIGS. 2A-2B). Part of theyarn will be knitted into the new stitch and part of the yarn remainsbehind on the resting needle, which will eventually be caught up in thenext stitch. The yarn is thus locked into two different stitches, whichtightens them both and disrupts the tension. This accident is common andcannot be blamed completely on the knitter. The knitter, in order to besuccessful in some cases, may need to bring the point of the workingneedle snugly against the resting needle and while maintaining contact,slide it under the right leg of the loop and through the center of thestitch. Another significant problem common among many of today'sknitters is the inability to easily knit projects having smallcircumferences, such as are found in many small hats, small sleeves,socks, and gloves, etc. A variety of methods have been developed toovercome this difficulty with limited success. Today there are knitterswho still use a set of small double pointed needles or DPNs 45 (usually3 or 4 resting needles plus one working needle), overlapping end to endin order to knit a piece having a small circumference (see e.g., FIG.3A).

In some such cases, the first resting needle, having been freed from allof its loops by the first working needle becomes the next working needleand travels to the next resting needle which, when freed from all of itsloops by the second working needle, becomes the new working needle. Thisprocess of leap-frogging around the circumference continues around andaround the piece, each resting needle becoming the new working needle inits turn. There are often three problems with this method. 1) If theknitter is using three resting needles and one working needle and eachneedle has two pointy ends there are a total of eight pointy ends tocontend with. In this case “contend with” means keeping the yarn fromdropping off of eight pointy ends while the knitter is adding stitches.2) When a knitter begins and ends the stitches on a working needle it iscommon for the first and last stitch to be slightly larger than thestitches in the middle of the working needle. Unless pulled very tightand held firmly until the next stitch is locked in place there will begaps or stitches that are too large between each set of needles on theknitted piece. 3) This method of creating a small circumference is oftenslow and awkward work (see e.g., FIG. 3B). Often, when the patternchanges, new struggles come into play as the knitter attempts to add ordecrease stitches in a tight, point filled area. For many projects therecomes a point when the circumference, which began very small, has beenenlarged enough that the knitter transfers the work to a conventionalcircular knitting needle system to finish the project. When transferringthe project from the double pointed needles to the circular knittingneedle system, the opportunity to drop stitches looms large. Droppedstitches take time and effort to pick up correctly. Few problems aremore frustrating.

Thus, while systems and methods currently exist that are used forknitting, challenges still exist, including those listed above.Accordingly, it would be an improvement in the art to augment or evenreplace current techniques with improved tools and techniques.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Some implementations of the described invention relate to a knittingneedle. While this knitting needle can have any suitable characteristicor component, in some cases, it defines a groove that extendslongitudinally along a length of an outer surface of the knittingneedle. In some cases, the groove opens near a pointed end (or a distalend) of the described needle. Thus, in some cases, a tip of a secondknitting needle can run longitudinally through the groove, such that thetip of the second needle is able to readily pass under a portion of yarn(or other material) that is on the described grooved knitting needle. Insome cases, a proximal end of the described knitting needle comprises anobject that is wider than a width of a shaft of the needle so as toprevent yard loops from falling off of the proximal end of the needle.In some cases, the described knitting needle is coupled with anotherneedle. While such coupling can be achieved in any suitable manner, insome cases, the two needles are coupled together with a non-resilientcoupler. Additionally, in some instances in which the grooved knittingneedle is used with a second needle (whether or not the two needles arecoupled together), at least one of the needles comprises adistinguishing feature that allows the two needles to be readilydistinguished. For instance, the two knitting needles can be differentcolors.

The described knitting needles (referred to herein in some cases asgrooved needle(s)) are knitting needles for the 21^(st) century andbeyond. In many cases, they incorporate a beautiful design and use basicscience to solve tension problems. Indeed, rather than fight with theknitter, the described grooved needles are configured to help theknitter to create a beautiful evenly knitted fabric—and, in someimplementations, they do it no matter how big or how small thecircumference of the project, without having to change from one systemto another.

The described grooved needles can be any suitable shape (e.g., have anelongated shaft with a cross-section taken perpendicularly to alongitudinal axis of the needle that is substantially square,triangular, pentagonal, hexagonal, round, cylindrical, circular,elliptical, star-shaped, multi-pointed, multi-protrusion,multi-cornered, multi-edged, symmetrical, asymmetrical, polygonal,regular shaped, irregularly shaped, and/or any other suitable shape). Insome implementations, the described grooved needles comprise squareknitting needles (or needles having a shaft with a squarecross-sectional view) which in some implementations comprise: a slot, arecess, a space between two or more ridges or processes, a depression, aconcavity, and/or other groove on or in the face of one or more sidesand/or external surfaces of the needle (e.g., on four sides of a squareneedle).

In accordance with some implementations, the described grooved needlesdefine a right angle groove, a V-shaped groove, a U-shaped groove, adove-tail shaped groove (e.g., having a relatively narrow opening thatbroadens towards a base of the groove), a rounded groove, and/or anyother suitably shaped groove (or needle guide) that is defined in (orotherwise incorporated. into) the needle. Indeed, in some cases, aV-shaped groove is cut, milled, molded, ground, etched, printed, and/orotherwise formed in the face of one or more sides, faces, or evencorners (e.g., at four sides) of the needle, with the groove having anangle between about 60 degrees and about 5 degrees, or any subrangethereof (e.g., about 45 degrees±30 degrees).

While the depth of the groove can be any suitable depth, in someimplementations, the depth of each groove is between about 1/10 andabout 9/10 of the total depth (or thickness) of the shaft of the needle,or any subrange thereof (e.g., about ¼ of the total depth of theneedle). In some implementations of a 9 inch (228.60 mm) or a groovedneedle comprising a straight knitting needle of any other suitablelength, one of more of the grooves begins and/or opens between about0.001 mm and about 50 mm, or any subrange thereof (e.g., about 11.37 mm)from the described needle's distal tip (or point) and continues betweenabout 5 mm and about 300 mm, or any subrange thereof (e.g., about 75.95mm) toward the proximal end of the needle before ending. Thus, in someimplementations, a tip of a second needle can be placed in the groove ofa first needle (e.g., below a piece of yard wrapped around the firstneedle) and the second needle can slide distally through the groove andthen be released form a distal end of the groove.

In some implementations, the distal tip of the described needletransitions or tapers from the grooved concave section to a round,curved, squared, pyramidal, pointed, and/or other suitably shaped pointwhich is any suitable size (e.g., having a width or diameter betweenabout 0.1 mm and about 1 cm or any subrange thereof, such as about 5 mm)and then is radius-ed (or otherwise shaped) to any suitable size (e.g.,between about 0.01 mm and about 20 mm or any subrange thereof, such asabout 0.25 mm).

In some cases, the proximal end of the needle is optionally fitted,formed with, and/or otherwise comprises a square cube, a cross bar,and/or an object of any other suitable shape which is any suitable size(e.g., between about 1.1 and about 10 times, or any subrange thereof),such as about two times) larger than the width of the needle shaft. Insome implementations, one or more (e.g., all) edges of the square cube(or other shaped object or enlargement at the needle's proximal end) areradius-ed to between about 0.1 mm and about 1 cm, or any subrangethereof (e.g., to about 0.25 mm±5 mm). In some cases, this cube (orother suitable object) acts as a stop to the yarn, ensuring that yarnwill not drop off of the proximal end of the needle. In any case, thedescribed needles, and their various features, can be manufactured to beany suitable size.

The described needles can also comprise any suitable material,including, without limitation, one or more types of wood, bamboo, metal,metal alloy, nylon, plastics, polymers, carbon fibers, acrylics, glass,synthetic materials, natural materials, ceramics, combinations thereof,and/or other suitable materials.

In some cases, tension is improved when using a square (or othercornered) needle shaft because kinetic friction of the yarn over thecorners of the needle retards the movement of the yarn, essentiallycreating a bobbin case-like tensioner, automatically regulating theamount of yarn sliding around the needle with very little fluctuation.The magnitude of the force depends on the coefficient of kineticfriction between the yarn and the needle. In some cases, it is possibleto calculate the force of kinetic friction for any combination of yarnand needles, but it should suffice to say that this force exists andexerts an influence on the movement of yarn around the square needle.Some might argue that yarn being pulled around a circular needle has thesame kinetic friction. It can be true, there can be kinetic frictionbetween the yarn and a circular needle, but (in some cases) is generallynot the same amount of friction. Since the areas of actual contact onthe square needle are often relatively small (typically the 90 degreecorners of a square needle hold the yarn slightly above the four facesof the square), the pressures at the points of contact (the corners) canbe relatively high. In some cases, a square needle or needle having ashaft with a cross section having four points) creates more frictionbetween the yarn and the needle than a round needle may. Almost anyonewho has ever pulled a rope around both a square post and a circular postwill recognize that the rope around the square post has more tension. Inaccordance with some implementations, the slight retarding of the threador yarn around the square needle helps the knitter regulate tensionautomatically, mechanically, and evenly with little fluctuation.

But kinetic friction is only part of the equation in the quest for eventension. Human error, exacerbated by an inadequate knitting system isoften the reason a square needle alone is not enough to guarantee goodtension. This is where the “gully,” depression, recess, slot, guide,furrow, trench, indentation, and/or other groove comes in. Because thereis a groove in one or more faces (e.g., 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, or more),corners, or surfaces of the shaft of some implementations of thedescribed needle, the knitter can utilize the groove to slide the tip(or distal point) of the working needle into the groove, under the rightleg of the yarn (as applicable) and through the center of the stitch onthe resting needle with ease, capture the new working yarn and thenslide back the same way it went in, taking the captured yarn with it.Bouclé, textured, heirloom, novelty, and/or any other similar yarns areno longer to be feared because some implementations of the describedgroove have made room for them, With some implementations of thedescribed grooved needles, it is no longer difficult to hold the tip ofthe working needle snuggly against the shaft of the resting needlebecause the tip will be held inside the groove on a lower plane than theloops of yarn. The tip of the working needle can travel inside thisgroove under the loops of yarn. Thus, in accordance with someimplementations, the chance of splitting the stitch has beensignificantly reduced and the opportunity for even tension has beensignificantly increased.

Often a knitter, when decreasing the stitches on the working needle,needs to knit two or three stitches together, (k2tog or k3tog) and bringthem all, at the same time, under the right (or another applicable) legof the yarn and through the center (or another appropriate portion) ofthe stitch on the resting needle. This can be difficult, even for anexperienced knitter. But when the knitter utilizes the described grooveto slip the combined stitches back under and through the center of thestitch, the task becomes much easier.

Another way that the described grooved needles (e.g., needles having oneor more grooves and being triangular, square, U-shaped, V-shaped, and/orany other suitable shape) work to control tension is this: as the needleis turned, the knitter can readily see the needle (and grooves) twistand/or roll. In this regard, most, if not all, needles roll in the handsof the knitter. When a needle rolls during the formation of a stitch,the needle pulls the yarn with it in the direction of the roll, makingthe stitches slightly bigger and/or slightly smaller depending on thedirection of the roll. When the needle rolls and how much the needlerolls depends in part on the knitter and in part on the needle and inpart on the yarn. This roll can be hard to recognize when using someround needles because the landscape of a round needle does notnecessarily change as it rolls or twists. But with a grooved needle (asdiscussed herein), a knitter can see the change as the needle rolls andcontrol the roll to his or her benefit.

Some implementations of the described grooved needles include a circularknitting needle system, or a system that comprises a pair of needlesthat are coupled together (in the case of the described system, the termcircular may simply connote two grooved needles coupled together and notrequire that the system form or comprise any circle). Indeed, in someimplementations, the described circular knitting system includes a pairof relatively short (e.g., between 1 inch and about 14 inches, or anysubrange thereof, such as about 4 inches or about 114.31 mm), square (orany other suitably shaped) needles that are coupled together and which,in some implementations, are given a relatively slight concavity on oneor more faces (e.g., each face) of the sides of the needles. Inaccordance with some implementations, a resilient coupler; anon-resilient coupler; a smoothly woven, flexible cord, strap, cloth orother object that comprises nylon, cloth, a strap, leather, fabric,and/or any other suitable material connects the two needles together. Insome such cases, the needles are used for knitting projects whichinvolve very small circumferences as well as knitting flat panels orworking in the round. While such needles can comprise any suitablematerial, in some implementations, the needles comprise one or morehardwoods, bamboos, metals, nylons, ceramics, polymers, syntheticmaterials, natural materials, plastics, glasses, acrylics, carbonfibers, and/or any suitable materials. In accordance with someimplementations, the needles have a deep, right angle (and/or any othersuitable angled, rounded, curved, and/or other suitably shaped) groovethat is cut, molded, ground, etched, and/or otherwise formed into themiddle (and/or other suitable surface) of one or more sides (e.g., eachof the sides of the needles) at about any suitable angle, including,without limitation, at an angle between about 5 degrees and about 110degrees, or within any subrange thereof (e.g., about a 45 degree angle).In some cases, the depth of the groove equals between about 1/10 andabout 9/10 , or any subrange thereof (e.g., about of the total depth (orthickness) of the needle's shaft, though the groove can have any othersuitable depth. In some cases, one or more grooves begin between about0.001 mm and about 50 mm, or any subrange thereof (e.g., at about 11.69mm) from the needle's distal tip and continue between about 1 mm andabout 300 mm, or any subrange thereof (e.g., about another 31.57 mm)toward the proximal end of the needle before ending.

In some instances, the distal tip of the needle transitions or tapersfrom the grooved concave section to a point which is between about 0.1mm and about 20 mm, or any subrange thereof (e.g., about 5 mm) in widthor diameter, in some cases, the point (or tip) is also radius-ed to anysuitable size, including, without limitation, to between about 0.01 mmand about 1 cm, or any subrange thereof (e.g., about 0.25 mm). In somecases, the needles are also made in sizes comparable to any or all USand European sizes. Additionally, in some non-limiting implementations,the grooves remain proportionately constant to the size of the needle.

In some cases, the flexible cord (and/or other connector), which isattached to the proximal ends of each needle (e.g., via gluing, anadhesive, a threaded coupling mechanism, a clamping mechanism, afriction fit mechanism, one or more fasteners, one or more catches, viaa weld, one or more clips, and/or in any other suitable manner), is madeof a smoothly woven, nylon, and/or other suitable type of cord ormaterial (e.g., parachute cord, string, ribbon, and/or any othersuitable cord). Additionally, although some implementations of thiscoupling mechanism or coupler are at least somewhat resilient or biasedtowards a certain position, some other implementations of the couplerhave little or absolutely no bias or spherical, circular, semi-circular,bent, and/or curved memory (e.g., the coupler comprises a non-resilientmaterial).

Additionally, the coupler can be attached to the needles at any suitabletime and in any suitable manner. For instance, in the case of someplastic (or other suitable) needles, the coupler is fused into thedescribed needles at the time of molding, additive printing, and/orother formation. In the case of some wooden (and other types of)needles, the smoothly woven, flexible, nylon cord (and/or any othersuitable connecting mechanism, coupler, or connector) is attached with aglue-in method into a prepared void in the proximal ends of each needle.In the case of some metal (and other types of) needles, the smoothlywoven, nylon cord (and/or other suitable connecting mechanism) isattached with a clip-in method or similar method which includes a swivelinto a spherical (and/or other suitably shaped) void prepared for thecord in the proximal end of each needle. The cord may be of any suitablelength. In some cases, the knitting is held on the smoothly woven,flexible nylon cord (or other coupler) between the two needles withoutfear of dropping any stitches.

Using some implementations of the described grooved needle comprising acircular knitting system (or circulars), a knitter is able to close thepin-hole at the smallest point of a circumference of a knitted workwithout changing to the clumsy DPNs. Because, in accordance with someimplementations, the smoothly woven, flexible, nylon cord (and/oranother suitable connector) has little or even absolutely no bias orspherical memory it does not impede or get in the way of the knitter.Indeed, in some implementations, the cord (or other coupler) does notexert any undue force on the stitches, does not pull the stitches out ofshape and can bend over onto itself or be pinched together without thethreat of breakage or permanent kinking. Additionally, in someimplementations, the smoothly woven, flexible nylon cord (or othercoupler) does readily twist and/or roll when the knitting needle rolls,which can be a very useful characteristic.

The smoothly woven, flexible, nylon cord (and/or other suitableconnection mechanism) of the described circular knitting system is alsoused, in some implementations, to detect needle rolling and/or twisting.Indeed, in accordance with some implementations, when a needle rollsand/or twists, the cord will also twist if it is flexible enough (mostoften the twist happens with the working needle.) This occurs frequentlyat the beginning of a knitted piece when there are few stitches/loops inplace. The twisting of the smoothly woven, flexible cord (or othersuitable connector) can be readily recognized (e.g., as the cord twists,binds, a pattern on the coupler twists, and/or the coupler otherwisetwists) and can act as a barometer, of sorts, of the kind of knittingbeing produced by the knitter. Without this barometer, some knitters maynot understand what is happening and why the tension is inferior. When aknitter sees the cord (or coupler) twist, for example, a simple roll ofthe needle in the opposite direction can bring the needle into thecorrect position in order to avoid over or undersized loops/stitches.And if the knitter has created a loop or stitch that is oversized orundersized, in some cases, a simple twist of the needle executed whileeither entering or exiting the stitch or loop will take extra yarn outof a loop or put extra yarn into the loop. The ability to pull yarn intoor out of a loop is made possible, in some implementations, because ofthe four corners of the square needle (or the corner or corners of anyother suitably shaped needle) and their ability to retard and controlthe movement of yarn.

In some implementations, the described grooved needles hold the yarn inplace so that there is little or no “loosening” as one knits the nextstitch. This ability of the described grooved needle to hold the yarn inplace on the knitting needle can reduce the need to fix the stitch bydrawing extra yarn out of the loop. In some cases, it also decreases theneed to hold or “trap” the yarn on the needle.

The combination of the needle (e.g., the square and/or other suitableshaped needle) and the groove on the face of one or more of the surfacesof the described needles (e.g., on each of the four faces of a squareneedle) work together, in some implementations, to automatically andconsistently control tension and greatly reduce the chance for humanerror. Indeed, in accordance with some implementations, straight groovedneedles and circular grooved knitting needles give the knitter, whetherold or young, experienced or novice, the optimal environment for eventension.

In accordance with some implementations, where two grooved knittingneedles are used together (either when coupled together or when usedwithout any coupling), the two needles can comprise one or more featuresthat allow the needles to be readily distinguished. In this regard, someexamples of such distinguishing features include, but are not limitedto, one of the needles comprising a different color, shape, marking,identifier, and/or other characteristic than the other needle. Indeed,in some implementations, the two needles each comprise a differentdominant color. For instance, while one needle is red, the other needlecan be grey. In any case, where the two needles are readilydistinguishable, such a feature can serve any suitable purpose. By wayof example, by having readily distinguishable needles, a knitter caneasily remember which needle is the working needle.

In accordance with some implementations, the described grooved needlesare configured to be used to knit flat panels to create sweaters, cowls,shawls, scarves, blankets, hats, stockinettes, socks, gloves, jackets,and/or any other suitable articles.

These and other features and advantages of the present invention will beset forth or will become more fully apparent in the description thatfollows and in the appended claims. The features and advantages may berealized and obtained by means of the instruments and combinationsparticularly pointed out in the appended claims. Furthermore, thefeatures and advantages of the invention may be learned by the practiceof the invention or will be obvious from the description, as set forthhereinafter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order that the manner in which the above recited and other featuresand advantages of the present invention are obtained, a more particulardescription of the invention will be rendered by reference to specificembodiments thereof, which are illustrated in the appended drawings.Understanding that the drawings depict only typical embodiments of thepresent invention and are not, therefore, to be considered as limitingthe scope of the invention, the present invention will be described andexplained with additional specificity and detail through the use of theaccompanying drawings in which:

FIGS. 1A-1E illustrate various instances of tension and/or uneventension;

FIGS. 2A-2B (prior art) illustrate instances of yarn splitting andconventional knitting;

FIGS. 3A-3B (prior art) illustrate examples of a set of small doublepointed needles overlapping end to end in order to knit a piece having asmall circumference;

FIG. 4A illustrates a perspective view of a grooved needle in accordancewith a representative embodiment;

FIGS. 4B-4D respectively illustrate cross-sectional views of someembodiments of the grooved needle;

FIG. 5 illustrates a perspective view showing grooved knitting needlesin use in accordance with a representative embodiment;

FIG. 6 shows a perspective view of the grooved knitting needle inaccordance with some representative embodiments;

FIG. 7 shows a portion of the grooved knitting needle having a piece ofyarn (or other material) wrapped around the needle in accordance with arepresentative embodiment;

FIG. 8 illustrates a distal portion of the grooved knitting needle inaccordance with a representative embodiment;

FIG. 9 illustrates a proximal end of the grooved knitting needle inaccordance with a representative embodiment;

FIG. 10 illustrates a distal elevation view of the grooved knittingneedle with a piece of yarn wrapped around the needle in accordance witha representative embodiment;

FIG. 11 illustrates a perspective view of a representative embodiment ofthe grooved knitting needle;

FIG. 12A illustrates a side view of the grooved knitting needle inaccordance with a representative embodiment;

FIG. 12B illustrates a distal elevation view of a representativeembodiment of the grooved needle;

FIG. 12C illustrates a proximal elevation view of a representativeembodiment of the grooved needle;

FIG. 13A illustrates a side view of a representative embodiment of thegrooved knitting needle;

FIG. 13B illustrates an enlarged view of a distal portion of the needleof FIG. 13A;

FIG. 13C illustrates a cross-sectional view of the needle of FIG. 13Btaken along line N-N;

FIG. 13D illustrates a cross-sectional view of the needle of FIG. 1313taken along line O-O;

FIG. 14A illustrates a side view of a representative embodiment of thegrooved needle;

FIG. 14B illustrates an enlarged view of a distal tip of the needle fromFIG. 14A;

FIG. 14C illustrates a distal elevation view of the needle from FIG.14A;

FIG. 15A illustrates a side view of a representative embodiment of thegrooved needle, the needle being of any suitable length;

FIG. 15B illustrates a distal view of the portion of the needle fromFIG. 15A, with such portion taken between lines P-P and Q-Q;

FIG. 16 illustrates a side view of a proximal end of a representativeembodiment of the grooved needle;

FIG. 17 illustrates a perspective view of two grooved needles that arecoupled together with a coupling mechanism;

FIG. 18 illustrates a side view of a representative embodiment of thegrooved needle having a tapered proximal end;

FIG. 19 illustrates a perspective view of a distal portion of the needlefrom FIG, 18;

FIG. 20 illustrates a perspective view of a proximal end of the groovedneedle, the proximal end of the needle defining a recess in accordancewith some embodiments;

FIG. 21 illustrates a representative embodiment of a coupler forcoupling two grooved needles together;

FIG. 22 illustrates a plan view of a knitted material prepared with twogrooved needles that are coupled together;

FIG. 23A illustrates a perspective view of the grooved needle comprisinga portion of a coupler in accordance with a representative embodiment;

FIGS. 23B and 23D each illustrate a side view of the grooved needle inaccordance with representative embodiments;

FIG. 23C illustrates a distal elevation view of the needle from FIG.23A;

FIG. 23E illustrates a proximal elevation view of the needle from FIG.23A;

FIG. 24A illustrates a side, cross-sectional view of a representativeembodiment of the grooved needle;

FIG. 24B illustrates a side, cross-sectional view of a representativeembodiment of the grooved needle;

FIG. 24C illustrates a distal elevation view of the needle from FIG.24A; and

FIG. 24D illustrates a distal elevation view of the needle from FIG.24B.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Some implementations of the described invention relate to a knittingneedle. While this knitting needle can have any suitable characteristicor component, in some cases, it defines a groove that extendslongitudinally along a length of an outer surface of the knittingneedle. In some cases, the groove opens near a pointed end (or a distalend) of the grooved knitting needle. Thus, in some cases, a tip of asecond knitting needle can run longitudinally through the groove, suchthat the tip of the second needle is able to readily pass under aportion of yarn (or other material) that is on the described groovedknitting needle. In some cases, a proximal end of the described knittingneedle comprises an object that is wider than a width of a shaft of theneedle so as to prevent yarn loops from falling off of the proximal endof the needle. In some cases, the described knitting needle is coupledwith another needle. While such coupling can be achieved in any suitablemanner, in some cases, the two needles are coupled together with anon-resilient coupler. Additionally, in some instances in which thegrooved knitting needle is used with a second needle (whether or not thetwo needles are coupled together), at least one of the needles comprisesa distinguishing feature that allows the two needles to be readilydistinguished. For instance, the two knitting needles can be differentcolors.

While the described knitting needle can comprise any suitable componentor characteristic, FIGS. 4A-16 show that, in some embodiments, theknitting needle 100 comprises an elongated shaft 105 having a distal end110 and a proximal end 115, where one or more grooves 120 are defined inthe shaft. Additionally, some embodiments of the needle comprise anenlarged portion (or enlargement 125) at the needle's proximal end 115.Additionally, while some embodiments of the described needles are usedindependently or without being coupled together (where such needles maybe referred to herein as straight needles), in some other embodiments,two or more needles are connected together with a coupling mechanism 130(with such needles sometimes being referred herein to as circularneedles, circular needle systems, and as variations thereof, see FIGS.17 and 17-24D).

In accordance with some embodiments, the described grooved needle 100(or straight needle, where the needle is not coupled to another needle)comprises a needle of any suitable cross-sectional shape, including,without limitation, a square shape, a triangular shape, a pentagonalshape, a cat-eye or cat-iris shape, a polygonal shape, a four-pointedstar shape, a three-pointed star shape, a five-pointed star shape, amulti-pointed star shape, a multi-cornered shape, a multi-process shape,an irregular shape, a regular shape, an asymmetrical shape, asymmetrical shape, and/or any other shape that allows the describedneedle to function as set forth herein. Alternatively, sonic embodimentsinclude the use of a round (e.g., as shown in FIG. 4B), cylindrical,elliptical, and/or otherwise rounded knitting needle 100 with a groove120 or grooves along its shaft 150; a triangular knitting needle with agroove or grooves on one or more of its sides (e.g., as shown in FIG.4C), a star-shaped knitting needle (as shown in FIG. 4D), and/or anyknitting needle with a groove or grooves extending longitudinally on oneor more of the needle's sides or external surfaces. In some embodiments,however, the described grooved needle (e.g., straight needle) comprisesa square knitting needle (e.g., as shown in FIG. 4A) that is configuredto be used when knitting yarn 40 (or any other material) into flatpanels of fabric and/or for any other suitable purpose.

While the drawings included herein (e.g., FIG. 4A) show embodiments inwhich the shaft 105 of the grooved needle 100 is substantially straight,in some other embodiments, the needle is curved, bent, angled, and/orotherwise varies from being straight throughout all or a portion of itslongitudinal length (or the length of the needle from its distal 110 toproximal 115 ends).

In accordance with some embodiments (and as mentioned), the describedknitting needle has a recessed portion, gully, gutter, channel,depression, space between raised ridges or rails, channel, and/or othergroove 120 in one or more of its faces or external surface. Indeed, insome embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 6, 7, 8 10, 11, 12A, 1213, 13A-13C,14A-15B 17-20, and 23A-24D, a square grooved needle 100 defines a groove120 on each of its four sides (or any other number of sides). That said,alternative methods include cutting, milling, molding, and/or otherwiseforming a groove into the face of one side, two sides, three sides, orany other suitable combination of the sides of the square knittingneedle or a knitting needle of a different shape.

The grooved needle 100 can be any suitable length. Indeed, in someembodiments, the length of the described needle (e.g., a straightneedle) is between about 1 inch (25.4 mm) and about 18 inches (457.2mm), or that is within any subrange thereof. Indeed, in someembodiments, the described straight needle is between about 3 inches(76.2 mm) and about 11 inches (279.4 mm) long (e.g., about 9 inches(228.60 mm)±1 inch or 25.4 mm). Alternative embodiments allow for otherlengths of the straight, grooved knitting needles may depend upon thestrength of the material used.

The described grooved knitting needle 100 (e.g., straight, groovedneedle) can be manufactured to be virtually any suitable size thatallows it to function as described herein. In some embodiments, however,the needle is manufactured in one or more sizes equivalent toconventional round needles (e.g., from U.S. size 3 through U.S. size 11,from European size 0 through European size 11, and/or any other possiblesize). Alternative U.S. and European sizes may also be considered andchosen.

In some embodiments, the described knitting needles 100 are manufacturedfrom one or more woods, bamboos, metals, nylons, plastics, carbonfibers, ceramics, acrylics, natural materials, types of glass, syntheticmaterials, and/or any suitable material or materials.

The described straight knitting needles 100 can also be manufactured inany suitable manner, including, without limitation, via cutting,milling, molding, injecting, spraying, 3D printing, additivemanufacturing, extruding, stamping, pressing, shaving, sanding,grinding, etching, deposition, and/or any other suitable method that isapplicable to the chosen material.

In some embodiments, the distal tip 112 of the described knitting needle100 (see e.g., FIG. 4A) transitions or tapers to a pointed tip beginningany suitable distance from the distal end 110 of the needle. Indeed, insome embodiments, the straight knitting needle transitions or tapers toa point beginning at between about 5 mm and about 80 mm or any subrangethereof (e.g., about 25.4 mm±5 mm) proximally from the distal end ofsaid needle and narrowing distally into the distal tip, creating a point(or tip) having any suitable diameter (or other shape). In someembodiments, the distal tip has a diameter (or width) that is betweenabout 0.1 mm and about 1 cm, or any subrange thereof (e.g., about 5 mm±2mm in diameter) Alternative ds allow, however, for a shorter or longertaper and a larger or smaller tip or point dimension. In any case, someembodiments of the distal tip are sized and shaped to fit within, andslide through, the described groove 120.

In some embodiments, the distal tip 112 or point of the knitting needle100 (e.g., a straight needle) is radius-ed to any suitable size. Indeed,in some embodiments, the distal tip is radius-ed to between about 0.01mm and about 1 cm, or any subrange thereof (e.g., about 0.25 mm±0.1 mm).Alternative methods allow for a smaller or larger radius of the distaltip or point of the described needle.

In some embodiments, the groove 120 on the described grooved knittingneedles 100 (e.g., straight grooved needles) begins at any suitabledistance from the needle's distal tip 112. Indeed, in some embodiments,the groove begins at, and runs proximally from, a distance between about0.001 mm and about 50 mm, or any subrange thereof (e.g., about 11.37 mmmm), from the distal tip of the needle. In some non-limitingembodiments, the placement of the groove on all other larger or smallersized grooved knitting needles is proportionate to the distal tip of thedescribed square, grooved needles. Alternative methods include beginningthe groove closer to the distal tip or farther from the tip of thesquare knitting needle and/or a knitting needle of any other suitableshape. Indeed, in some non-limiting embodiments, the groove begins about11.37 mm±5 mm from the distal tip of the needle and continues in a linesubstantially parallel to a longitudinal axis 108 of the shaft 105 ofthe needle any suitable distance, including, without limitation, betweenabout another 10 mm and about 20 cm, or any subrange thereof (e.g.,between about 50 mm and 100 mm in length or even about another 75.95mm±10 mm) toward the proximal end 115 of the needle.

The groove 120 can extend any suitable depth into the described knittingneedle 100 that allows the needle function as set forth herein. In someembodiments, the groove extends into the needle between about 1/100 and9/10 (or any subrange thereof) of the total depth of the shaft 105 ofthe needle. In accordance with some embodiments, however, the depth ofthe groove formed into one or more faces of the knitting needle isbetween about ⅕ and about ⅓ (e.g. about ¼) of the total depth of theknitting needle.

The grooves 120 in the described needle 100 can be any suitable shape,including, without limitation, being angled, rounded, curved, squared,rectangular, polygonal, oval, V-shaped, U-shaped, dove-tailed, and/orany other suitable shape. In some embodiments in which the groove orgrooves formed in the needle are angled (e.g., so as to have a V-shape),the grooves can be formed in the needle so as to have any suitable anglebetween intersecting walls of the groove. Indeed, in some embodiments,the inner walls of the groove are disposed with respect to each other atan angle a between about 5 degrees and about 160 degrees (or anysubrange thereof). In some embodiments, for instance, the groove isapproximately a 90 degree right angle that is cut, milled, molded,and/or otherwise formed directly into the middle of the face on each ofthe sides of the knitting needle 100 (see e.g., FIG. 15B), Alternativemethods are to cut, mill, mold, and/or otherwise form the 90° rightangle (and/or a groove of any other suitable angle and/or shape) nearerto either edge on the face of one of more sides of the knitting needle(e.g., in four sides of a square needle) or farther from either edge onthe face of each of one or more sides of the knitting needle or (asmentioned above) to create a groove that is more than 90° or less than90°.

The groove 120 can run in any suitable direction that runslongitudinally down a length of the needle 100 (e.g., by runningparallel with a length or longitudinal axis of the needle, by beingangled on the needle, by twisting around a portion of the needle, byfollowing a curved path, by having a zig-zag path, and/or by otherwiseextending down a length of the needle). By way of non-limitingillustration, FIG. 4A shows an embodiment in which the groove 120 runssubstantially parallel to a longitudinal axis 108 of the needle 100.Alternative methods, however, include placing the groove at any angleother than parallel to the shaft on one, two, three and/or any othercombination of sides of the knitting needle, Additionally, in someembodiments, there are more than one groove on one, any, and/or allsides of the knitting needle. That said, in some embodiments, one grooveruns in a line that is substantially parallel to the shaft of theneedle, in the middle of the face on each of the four sides of a square,straight, grooved, knitting needle (see e.g., FIGS. 14A-14B).

In accordance with some embodiments, the described knitting needles 100optionally incorporate one or more shallow concavities 128 on one ormore faces of the various sides of the knitting needle, together with agroove 120 that is cut, milled, molded, and/or otherwise formed into theconcavity on the face of each of the sides of the knitting needle (seee.g., FIGS. 14C and 15B). In this regard, the concavities can extend anysuitable amount into the needles, including, without limitation, betweenabout 1/10 0 and about 9/10 (or any subrange thereof) of the totalthickness of the needle's shaft. Indeed, in some embodiments, theconcavity is between about 1/20 and about ¼ of the total thickness ofthe needle.

In some embodiments, the concavity 128 spans a distance from one edge(or corner) of the knitting needle 100 to an opposite edge (or corner)of the knitting needle on the face of one or more sides of the knittingneedle. Alternative embodiments, however, include a concavity which doesnot span the distance from one edge of the knitting needle to theopposite edge of the knitting needle on the face of each of the sides(e.g., on four sides) of the knitting needle. In some additionalalternative embodiments, the needle includes a concavity which appearson the face of one, two, three, or more sides, and/or any combination ofsides of the knitting needle with one or more accompanying grooves 120disposed in one, two, or more of the concavities (see e.g., FIG. 14C).In still other embodiments, the needle defines one or more concavitieswhich do not include a groove in all (or in some to embodiments, any)face of the sides of the knitting needle. In still other embodiments,the needle includes a groove on only one, two, three faces, and/or anycombination of faces, on the sides of the knitting needle. In someembodiments, however, the described knitting needle comprises a shallowconcavity on the face of each of the four sides (or any other suitablenumber of sides) of the knitting needle, together with a groove that isc milled, molded, and/or otherwise formed into the concavity on the faceof each of the four (or any other suitable number of) sides of theknitting needle. In some embodiments, the depth of the concavity on theface of each of the sides of the described knitting needle, whetherpresented with the described groove or not, is between about 0.001 mmand about 8 mm, or any subrange there of (e.g., about 0.04 mm±0.02 mm).That said, alternative depths of the concavity on the face of each ofthe sides of the straight knitting needle are contemplated herein. Inthis regard, the concavity can perform any suitable purpose, including,without limitation, causing corners of the knitting needle to besomewhat more pointed to help increase friction between the needle andyarn wrapped around it.

In some embodiments, the described knitting needle 100 (e.g., straight,grooved needle) optionally has a square cube, a rectangular prism-shapedobject, a ball, a figurine, a decorative object, a prism-shaped object,a cross member, and/or any suitably shaped object or enlargementdisposed at the proximal end 115 of the needle. By way of non-limitingillustration, FIG. 11 shows an embodiment in which the proximal end 115of the needle 100 comprises a cube-shaped enlargement 125. In any case,the object at the proximal end of the needle can be any suitable sizethat allows the object to prevent yarn (or any other suitable material)from falling off of the proximal end of the needle during the knittingprocess. Indeed, in some embodiments, the object disposed at theproximal end of the needle is between about 1.1 and about 10 times, orany subrange thereof, of the thickness of the needle itself. In someembodiments, the object at the distal end of the needle is between about1.5 times and about 3 times as thick as the width or diameter of theneedle.

Where the described needle 100 comprises an enlargement at the proximalend 115 of the needle, such object can be coupled to the needle in anysuitable manner, including, without limitation, by being: integrallyformed with, glued to, nailed to, fastened to, friction fit with,threaded with, threaded to, printed with, clipped to, mechanicallyengaged with, and/or otherwise formed with and/or coupled to the needle.In any case, such enlargement can comprise any suitable material,including, without limitation, wood, plastic, acrylic, nylon, carbonfiber, metal, hardened rubber, natural materials, synthetic materials,and/or any other suitable material. Alternative embodiments to thosedescribed above also use other shapes, manufactured from othermaterials, and/or in other sizes which also function as an enlargementor stop to keep yarn from falling off the proximal end. Alternatively,some embodiments of the needle include no stop or enlargement at all.

According to some embodiments, the described knitting needles 100 arerelatively short, square (and/or any other suitable shape) knittingneedles. While such needles can be used for any suitable purpose, insome cases, they are used when knitting projects that begin or end in avery tight circumference, such as gloves, socks, small hats, smallsleeves, etc. In some cases, they are used for knitting “in the round”or they may be used to knit flat panels. In some embodiments, theserelatively short, square (or otherwise shaped) needles have a groove 120on the face of one or more sides of the needles and are connectedtogether at the proximal ends of the knitting needles by a couplingmechanism or coupler (e.g., a cord, a string; a woven, flexible, nyloncord, a flexible rope, a ribbon, a piece of flexible fabric, a piece ofcloth, a strap, a cable, and/or any other suitable material). In someembodiments, the coupler extending between two knitting needles (e.g.,circular needles) is mostly, if not completely, unbiased, having nomemory. Indeed, in some embodiments, the coupler is non-resilient. Byway of non-limiting illustration, FIG. 17 shows an embodiment in which acoupler 130 (e.g., a braided nylon cord) joins two needles 100 together.

Although the drawings included herein show knitting needles 100 incircular systems as being square, alternative embodiments include theuse of relatively short, round, knitting needles with a groove orgrooves along the shaft, triangular needles with a groove or grooves onone or more of its sides, and/or any polygonal or suitable shapedknitting needle (e.g., as discussed. above or otherwise) with a grooveor grooves on one or more of its sides or external surfaces.

In some embodiments, the length of each knitting needle 100 in thecircular needle system is between about 1 inch (25.4 mm) and about 12inches (304.8 mm), or any subrange thereof (e.g., about 4 inches (orabout 114.31 mm)±1.5 inches or 38.1 mm). Alternative embodiments allowfor other lengths of the knitting needles in circular systems, but suchlengths may depend upon the strength of the material used.

The described needles 100 used in circular systems can be any suitablesize that allows them to function as described herein. In someembodiments, the each of the knitting needles 100 in the describedcircular knitting needle system is manufactured in one or more sizesequivalent to conventional round needles—from U.S. size 3 through U.S.size 11, from Europe size 0 through European size 11, etc. AlternativeU.S., European, and other sizes may also be considered and chosen.

The described knitting needles 100 in the described circular systems cancomprise any suitable material. In some embodiments, however, theknitting needle of the circular knitting systems (like the other needlesdescribed herein) can comprises one or more pieces of wood, bamboo,metal, nylon, plastics, polymers, rubbers, carbon fibers, naturalmaterials, synthetic materials, and/or any other suitable materials thatallow the needle to function as intended.

Additionally, the circular knitting needle system can be manufactured inany suitable manner, including, without limitation, via cutting,milling, molding, injecting, spraying, extruding, sanding, etching,polishing, 3D printing, and/or any other method that is applicable tothe chosen material.

In some embodiments, the distal tip of one or more of the knittingneedles 100 in the described circular knitting systems transitions ortapers to a pointed tip (e.g., the distal tip 112) beginning at adistance between about 5 mm and about 60 mm, or any subrange thereof(e.g., about 25.4 mm±5 mm) proximal to the distal end 110 of said needletoward the distal tip 112 of the needle, creating a pointed tip havingany suitable diameter (or other suitable shape or size). Indeed, in someembodiments, the distal tip of needles in the described circularknitting system (e.g., shown in FIG. 17) has a diameter (or width) thatis between about 0.1 mm and about 1 cm, or any subrange thereof (e.g.,about 5 mm±2 mm in diameter. Alternative embodiments allow for a shorteror longer taper and/or a larger or smaller tip or point dimension.

In some embodiments, the distal tip 112 or point of one or more of theknitting needles in the described circular knitting systems is radius-ed(or otherwise shaped) to any suitable size. Indeed, in some embodiments,the distal tip is radius-ed to between about 0.01 mm and about 1 cm, orany subrange thereof (e.g., about 0.25 mm±0.1 mm). Alternativeembodiments comprise a smaller or larger radius of the distal tip and/orpoint of the described needle.

In some embodiments, the groove 120 on the face of each of the sides ofthe knitting needles 100 in the described circular systems are cut,milled, molded, and/or otherwise formed into the face of one or more ofthe sides (or surfaces) of the knitting needle. Indeed, in someembodiments, a groove is cut, milled, molded, and/or otherwise formedinto the face of one side, two sides, three sides, four sides, or anysuitable combination of sides of the knitting needle.

In some embodiments, the length of the groove 120 on the describedknitting needles 100 in the circular systems begins at any suitabledistance proximal to the needle's distal tip, including, withoutlimitation, between about 0.001 mm and about 50 mm, or any subrangethereof (e.g., about 11.37 mm±2 mm) from the distal tip of the needle,and continues toward the proximal end of the needle in a linesubstantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the shaft 105 (or alongany other path, as discussed above) of the needle any suitable distance,including, without limitation, between about another 5 mm and aboutanother 500 mm (e.g., about 19.82 mm±5 mm). In some embodiments, theplacement of the grooves on other larger or smaller sized knittingneedles is proportionate to the distal tip of the knitting needles.Alternative embodiments include beginning the grooves closer the distaltip or farther from the tip of the knitting needles.

The length of the groove on the knitting needles 100 in the describedcircular knitting needle systems can (as discussed above) be anysuitable length, including, without limitation, between about 5 mm andabout 150 mm in length, or any subrange thereof (e.g., about 31.57 mmlong±5 mm). In some embodiments, different sizes of the describedneedles (e.g., circular needles) optionally have similar groove lengths.That said, in some alternative embodiments, the length of the groovevaries to be any suitable length along the shaft 105 of the knittingneedle in the described circular systems.

As discussed above, the groove 120 can extend any suitable depth intothe described knitting needle 100 used in circular systems that allowsthe needles to function as set forth herein. In some embodiments, thegroove extends into one or more of the needles between about 1/100 and9/10 (or any subrange thereof) of the total depth or thickness of theshaft of the needle. In accordance with some embodiments, however, thedepth of the groove that is formed into one or more faces of theknitting needles in circular systems is about ¼ of the total depth ofthe corresponding knitting needle. Alternative depths, however, arecontemplated herein.

The grooves 120 in the needles 100 of the described circular knittingsystems (as in the other grooved needles discussed herein) can be anysuitable shape, including, without limitation, being angled, beingrounded, curved, squared, rectangular, polygonal, oval, V-shaped,U-shaped, and/or any other suitable shape. In some embodiments in whichthe groove or grooves formed in the needle are angled (e.g., areV-shaped), the grooves can be formed in the needle so as to have anysuitable angle between intersecting walls of the groove. Indeed, in someembodiments, the inner walls of the groove are disposed with respect toeach other at an angle α between about 10° and about 160° (or anysubrange thereof; see e.g., FIG. 15B). In some embodiments, forinstance, the groove is a 90° right angle, cut, milled, molded, and/orotherwise formed directly into the middle of the face of one or more ofthe sides of the needles in the described circular knitting needlesystem. In accordance with some alternative embodiments, grooves arecut, milled, molded, and/or otherwise formed in one or more of theneedles as a 90° right angle placed nearer to either edge on the face ofeach of the sides of the needle or farther from either edge on the faceof one or more of the sides of the needle, or a groove that is less than90° or more than 90° is formed in the needle. The groove may be cut,milled, molded, or otherwise formed into other shapes or configurations(e.g., a rectangular groove, a circular groove, an ovular groove, and/orany other suitable shape).

While the groove 120 may follow any suitable path in the needle 100 ofthe described circular knitting systems (e.g., a curved path, a zig-zagpath, a twisting path, and/or any other suitable path along the needle),in some embodiments, the groove travels in a parallel linelongitudinally along the shaft 105 of one or more of the knittingneedles in the circular system. Alternative methods include placing thegroove at any angle other than parallel to the shaft on one, any or allsides of the needle. Additionally, in some embodiments, there is morethan one groove on one, two, three, four, and/or any other suitablenumber of the sides of the knitting needle.

In some embodiments, the knitting needles 100 in the described circularsystems incorporate a shallow concavity 128 on the face of one or moresides of the knitting needles, together with a groove that is cut,milled, molded, and/or otherwise formed into the concavity on the faceof one or more sides of the knitting needle. In this regard, theconcavities can extend any suitable amount into the needles, including,without limitation, between about 1/100 and about 9/10 (or any subrangethereof) of the total thickness of the needle. Indeed, in someembodiments, the concavity is between about 1/20 and about ¼ of thetotal thickness of the needle,

In some embodiments, the concavity 128 in needles 100 in a circularsystem spans the distance from one edge of the knitting needle to theopposite edge of the knitting needle on the face of one or more sides ofthe knitting needle. Some alternative embodiments, however, include aconcavity which does not span the distance from one edge of thestraight, square (or other shaped) knitting needle to the opposite edgeof the knitting needle on the face of one or more sides (e.g., on foursides) of the knitting needle in the circular system. In some additionalalternative embodiments, the needle includes a concavity which appearson the face of one, two, three, or more sides, and/or any combination ofsides of the knitting needle with one or more accompanying grooves 120disposed in one, two, or more of the concavities (see e.g., FIG. 14C).In still other embodiments, the needle defines one or more concavitieswhich do not include a groove in all (or in some embodiments, any) faceof the sides of the knitting needle. In still other embodiments, theneedle includes a groove on only one, two, three, four faces, and/or anyother combination of faces, on the sides of the knitting needle. In someembodiments, however, the knitting needles used in the describedcircular systems comprise a shallow concavity on the face of each of thefour sides (or any other suitable number of sides) of one or more of theknitting needles, together with a groove that is cut, milled, molded,and/or otherwise formed into the concavity on the face of each of thefour (or any other suitable number of) sides of the knitting needle.

In some embodiments, the depth of the concavity 128 on the face of oneor more sides of the knitting needles 100 in the described circularknitting needle system, whether presented with the described groove 120or not (as in some of the other needles described herein), is betweenabout 0.001 mm and about 8 mm, or any subrange thereof (e.g., about 0.04mm±0.02 mm). That said, alternative depths of the concavity on the faceof each of the sides of the circular knitting needles are contemplatedherein.

In some embodiments, the two knitting needles 100 in the describedcircular system are joined together at their proximal ends 115 via oneor more cords, ropes, ribbons, strings, straps, and/or other suitableconnecting mechanisms or couplers. Indeed, as discussed above, in someembodiments, a smoothly woven, flexible nylon cord is used to connecttwo knitting needles at the proximal ends of the needles. In some suchembodiments, the cord has no memory or spherical bias. Indeed, in someembodiments, the cord (or other coupler) is non-resilient (or does notbias the two coupled needles to be moved closer together or furtherapart from each other).

Although the various needles 100 can be coupled to the connectingmechanism or coupler 130 in any suitable manner (e.g., via glue; a knot;having the connection mechanism be looped around a portion of theneedles; injection molding; one or more threaded engagements, clips,mechanical engagements, frictional engagements, barbs, or otherconnectors; and/or in any other suitable manner), in some embodiments,the connection of the smoothly woven, flexible nylon cord (or othersuitable coupler) to the proximal ends of two grooved knitting needlescomprising wood and/or any other suitable material is accomplished bygluing the coupler into a spherical, cylindrical, and/or other suitableshaped) void 135 (see e.g., FIGS. 20 and 24A-24B) at the proximal ends115 of two of the needles 100. In some alternative embodiments, however,the smoothly woven, flexible nylon cord is connected into the proximalends of two wooden needles by methods other than gluing. Indeed, FIG.24B shows an embodiment in which the coupler 130 is frictionally and/ormechanically connected to the needle 100 via a clip 137.

In some embodiments, the connection of the smoothly woven, flexiblenylon cord (and/or any other suitable coupler) to be proximal ends 115of two knitting needles 100 (e.g., needles in a circular knittingsystem) wising carbon fiber and/or any other suitable material isaccomplished by attaching the cord (or coupler) into a spherical orcylindrical void 135 at the proximal ends of two of the needles preparedfor the cord in any acceptable manner for attaching objects to oneanother. In some alternative embodiments, the smoothly woven, flexiblenylon cord (and/or any other suitable connection mechanism) is connectedto the proximal ends of two carbon fiber needles by other methods (e.g.,one or more frictional engagements, clamps, welds, etc.). In someembodiments, the connection of the smoothly woven, flexible nylon cord(or any other suitable coupler) to the proximal ends of two groovedknitting needles (e.g., a circular knitting system) comprising plastic,acrylic, nylon, and/or any other suitable material is accomplished byover molding the cord into the body of the needles during the injectionmolding process. In some embodiments, an alternative glue-in method forconnecting the smoothly woven, flexible nylon cord (and/or othersuitable coupler) into one or more voids and/or any other suitablereceptacle/connection point that is prepared at the proximal ends of twoplastic, acrylic, nylon, and/or other suitable knitting needles of acircular knitting system may be utilized.

In some embodiments, the smoothly woven, flexible nylon cord (and/or anyother suitable coupler 130) is connected to the proximal ends 115 of twocircular knitting needles (namely one or more of the described groovedneedles 100) that comprises aluminum, stainless steel, nickel platedbrass, platinum, and/or any other suitable material by means of amultiple (e.g., two, three, four, etc.) pronged clip 137 (see e.g.,FIG., 24B), over molded onto each end of the cord which is inserted intoa void 135 in the proximal ends 115 of each of the needles 100 which isprepared for the clip. In this regard, the clip may or may not bemanufactured to swivel.

In some embodiments, the smoothly woven, flexible nylon cord (and/orother suitable coupler 130) is flexible and has no memory or sphericalbias. In some such embodiments, the connection mechanism comprisesnylon, another material having one or more attributes similar to nylon,and/or any other suitable material. In one example, the couplercomprises any suitable material that allows the cord to be able to bendonto itself without causing noticeable damage to the cord. Somealternative embodiments utilize other materials which have no memory orspherical bias and are able to bend onto themselves without causingnoticeable damage to the connection mechanism or joint. In other words,while some knitting systems comprise a resilient or semi-resilientconnector that tends to bias connected needles in on or more positions,some embodiments of the coupler 130 are not resilient (e.g., compriseflexible cord, cloth, twine, and/or any other suitable material).

In some cases, the diameter of the smoothly woven, flexible nylon cord(and/or any other suitable coupler 130) that is prepared for differentsizes of grooved knitting needles (e.g., grooved needles in a circularsystem) is relative to the void 135 in the proximal ends 115 on each ofthe two knitting needles. Alternative diameters may be chosen which fitinto a void (and/or other coupler or receptacle) prepared to accept thecord (and/or other coupling mechanism) on the proximal end of theneedles.

In some embodiments, the smoothly, woven, flexible nylon cord (and/orother coupler 130) of the grooved knitting needles in a circular systemmay be manufactured in various lengths, including, but not limited to:being between about 2 inches (50.8 mm) and about 60 inches (1.524 m), orany subrange thereof (e.g., about 16 inches or 406.4 mm, about 24 inchesor 609.6 mm, about 30 inches or 762 mm, etc.). Alternative sizes may beconsidered and chosen. In some embodiments, the smoothly woven, flexiblenylon cord (or other coupler) may be interchangeable when used with theclip 137 (and/or other suitable mechanism)

In accordance with some embodiments, the described grooved knittingneedle 100 (e.g., straight needles or needles that are not coupledtogether at their proximal ends 115) is able to: enable a knitter whenworking flat to control and improve tension; easily knit withconsistent, even tension, thus creating a beautiful fabric; reduce humanerrors by providing a groove 120 on the face of one or more of the sidesof the needle, giving the working needle increased ability to slideunder the right (or other suitable) leg of a stitch and through thecenter of the loop without splitting the stitch; enable the knitter todecrease the stitches (k2tog, k3tog, etc.) more easily; and/or enable aknitter to “see” or be aware of one of the little known causes of uneventension: “needle roll,” which gives the knitter power to control thisroll to their benefit.

In accordance with some non-limiting embodiments, the described groovedknitting needles 100 (e.g., when used in circular knitting system) areconfigured to: enable the knitter when working “In the Round” orknitting small circular items, such as gloves, socks, small hats, smallsleeves, etc., to control and improve tension; to easily knit withconsistent, even tension, thus creating a beautiful fabric; reduce humanerrors by providing a groove 120 on the face of each of the sides of theneedle, giving the working needle increased ability to slide under theright (or other suitable) leg of the stitch and through the center ofthe loop without splitting stitches; enable the knitter to decrease thestitches (k2tog, k3tog, etc.) more easily; allow the knitter to closethe small hole at the beginning or ending of a very small circularproject without having to switch to the clumsy DPN method; avoid thenumerous problems and weaknesses caused by using a flexible connectingcord which has a memory or spherical bias; and/or enable the knitter to“see” or be aware of one of the little known causes of uneven tension:“needle roll,” which gives the knitter power to control this roll totheir benefit.

In addition to the foregoing, the described grooved needles 100 can bemodified in any suitable manner. Indeed, although some embodiments ofthe needles are relatively straight (as illustrated in the drawings), insome other embodiments, the needles are curved, comprise a curvedsection, and/or are otherwise varied from conventional needles (e.g., asmentioned above), while still comprising at least one groove and/orconcavity (as described herein). In another example, some embodiments ofthe described circular knitting system comprises one needle with grooves120, while the other needle is free from grooves.

In still another example, in some embodiments in which two groovedneedles 100 are used together (including, without limitation, forstraight needles or circular needles), at least one of the two needlescomprises a distinguishing feature that allows the two needles to bereadily distinguished. In this regard, some examples of suchdistinguishing features include, but are not limited to, one of theneedles comprising a different color, shape, marking, identifier, and/orother characteristic than the other needle. Indeed, in someimplementations, the two needles each comprise a different dominantcolor. By way of non-limiting example, while one needle is red, theother needle can be grey. In any case, where the two needles are readilydistinguishable, such a feature can serve any suitable purpose. Forinstance, by having readily distinguishable needles, a knitter caneasily remember which needle is the working needle.

In this regard, it is a common occurrence when knitting a stockinettepattern (one row of garter stitches followed by one row of purlstitches, repeated) on a pair of conventional knitting needles to forgetwhich of the two basic stitches (garter or purl) a knitter has justemployed. This forgetting may happen at any time, including after theknitter has completed a whole row and is about to begin a new row orwhen the knitter sets the work down for a period of time and then comesback to the work to continue knitting. When the knitter forgets, he orshe will need to examine the knitted work to discover which stitch hasjust been employed. For a beginning knitter, however, it is oftenconfusing to “read” the knitted stitches. Thus, one solution to such aproblem is having the two needles be readily distinguishable.

By way of example, where two knitting needles (e.g., grooved needles 100and/or other needles) are readily distinguishable (e.g., by having oneneedle have a first dominant color (or other distinguishing feature),and the other needle have a second dominant color (or other identifiablefeature or lack thereof)), the process of identifying the working andresting needles (and the type of stitches that have already done) can berelatively easy. In this example, if the knitter begins by knittinggarter stitches using a red needle, for instance, in the workingposition (where the term working needle, working position, andvariations thereof may refer to a needle that is relatively free ofloops and ready to begin knitting new loops and is often, but notnecessarily, held in the dominant hand) and where the knitter is using agrey needle, for instance, in the resting position, with the greyresting needle having multiple loops waiting to be taken off (theresting needle often being held in the non-dominant hand), and theknitter continues knitting to the end of a row, the knitter will thenhave all of the loops on the red needle which now becomes the restingneedle. In this example, the grey needle, which is now free of itsloops, becomes the working needle, and the knitter will then knit a rowof purl stitches. In this way, the knitter may see at a glance whichstitch to employ next. Indeed, in this example, when the red needle isin the working position, the knitter will know to knit garter stitches.In contrast, when the grey needle is in the working position the knitterwill know to knit purl stitches.

Continuing with this non-limiting example, if the knitter sets the workaside before finishing a row and loops are left on both the workingneedle and the resting needle, a simple glance at which needle isconnected to the source of the yarn will tell the knitter which needleis the working needle. If, for instance, the source yarn is connected tothe red needle, the knitter will know to continue the garter stitch. Ifthe source yarn is connected to the grey needle, the knitter will knowto continue with the purl stitch.

In accordance with some embodiments, the described system and methodsinclude having two grooved knitting needles 100 in circular systems (orcircular needles) be readily distinguishable (e.g., by being a differentcolor or otherwise being readily distinguishable). In one non-limitingexample, a knitter uses a circular system having a red needle that iscoupled to a grey needle. In this example (and whether the knitter isknitting the garter stitch or the purl stitch), if the knitter haschosen the red colored needle as the working needle, the red needle willalways remain the working needle and the grey colored needle will alwaysremain the resting needle.

In addition to the aforementioned features, the described systems andmethods can provide one or more additional features. In one example, byhaving the groove 120 in a first needle and having a second needle beable to be inserted into the groove, below a piece of yarn wrappedaround the first needle, the described grooved needles 100 allow usersto easily knit while avoiding yarn splitting 25. As a result, knitterscan use some embodiments of the grooved needles to knit with boucléyarns (or yarns that vary from bring thick to thin), heirloom yarns,novelty yarns, standard yarns, and/or any other type of suitablematerial, while avoiding yarn splitting.

In another example, as yarn tension can be modified by rotating aknitting needle, some embodiments of the described grooved needles 100that are polygonal (e.g., square and/or any other suitable shape),define one or more grooves 120, and/or are otherwise shaped as describedherein, allow a knitter to readily recognize when the needles roll(something that may be difficult with some conventional cylindricalneedles). Accordingly, in some such embodiments, the knitter can bettermonitor and/or stop unintentional needle rotation (and the accompanyingchanges in tension).

As still another example, some embodiments of the described groovedneedles 100 (e.g., circular knitting systems comprising the groovedneedles) allow knitters to knit, with relative ease, projects that havesmall radiuses (e.g., without the challenges of double pronged needlesor DPNs).

Additionally, while some conventional knitting systems that have twoneedles coupled together typically have a semi-rigid yet flexible cord(e.g., comprising solid nylon, plastic, steel cables, and/or othermaterials that are biased towards a particular position), someembodiments of the described circular knitting systems comprisinggrooved needles 100 comprise a non-resilient coupler 130 (or a couplerthat is flexible and is not biased from one side to another, at leastwhen the coupler is not twisted). Accordingly, unlike some conventionalmethods in which the semi-rigid cord or cable tend to fail due toexcessive bending and kinking, some embodiments of the describedcircular knitting systems can freely bend and kink without concern ofthe coupler's failure.

Moreover, some conventional systems with two needles that are coupledtogether by a semi-rigid, resilient, or semi-resilient cord or cable canmake it difficult to move the needles to desired positions. Indeed, insome such cases, a knitter may feel that, to some extent, the knitter isfighting with the semi-rigid or biased cord which seems to have a mindof its own. In some such cases, when a knitter needs to bring the twoneedle tips close together, the conventional semi-rigid cord can exert aforce on the stitches, pulling them out of shape and creating large orotherwise ungainly stitches. In contrast, some embodiments of thedescribed circular knitting systems comprising one or more groovedneedles 100 can be used with a non-rigid, non-resilient, and/orotherwise non-biased coupler 130, which can allow for easy movement ofthe coupled needles in the manner desired by the knitter.

Thus, some embodiments of the described invention relate to a knittingneedle. More specifically, while this knitting needle can have anysuitable characteristic or component, in some cases, it defines a groovethat extends longitudinally along a length of an outer surface or theknitting needle. In some cases, the groove opens near a pointed end (ora distal end) of the described needle. Thus, in some cases, a tip of asecond knitting needle can run longitudinally through the groove, suchthat the tip of the second needle is able to readily pass under aportion of yarn (or other material) that is on the described groovedknitting needle. In some cases, a proximal end of the described knittingneedle comprises an object that is wider than a width of a shaft of theneedle so as to prevent yard loops from falling off of the proximal endof the needle. In some cases, the described knitting needle is coupledwith another needle. While such coupling can be achieved in any suitablemanner, in some cases, the two needles are coupled together with anon-resilient coupler. Additionally, in some instances in which thegrooved knitting needle is used with a second needle (whether or not thetwo needles are coupled together), at least one of the needles comprisesa distinguishing feature that allows the two needles to be readilydistinguished. For instance, the two knitting needles can be differentcolors.

In addition to any previously indicated modification, numerous othervariations and alternative arrangements may be devised by those skilledin the art without departing from the spirit and scope of thisdescription, and appended claims are intended to cover suchmodifications and arrangements. Thus, while the information has beendescribed above with particularity and detail in connection with what ispresently deemed to be the most practical and preferred aspects, it willbe apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that numerousmodifications, including, but not limited to, form, function, manner ofoperation, and use may be made without departing from the principles andconcepts set forth herein. Also, as used herein, the examples,implementations, and embodiments, in all respects, are meant to beillustrative only and should not be construed to be limiting in anymanner. Additionally, any element or elements from any embodiment,implementation, or drawing included herein can be combined with anyother element or elements from any other embodiment, implementation, ordrawing set forth herein. In addition, as the terms on, disposed on,attached to, connected to, coupled to, etc. are used herein, one object(e.g., a material, element, structure, member, etc.) can be on, disposedon, attached to, connected to, or coupled to another object regardlessof whether the one object is directly on, attached, connected, orcoupled to the other object, or whether there are one or moreintervening objects between the one object and the other object. Also,directions (e.g., on top of, below, above, top, bottom, side, up, down,under, over, upper, lower, lateral, medial, vertical, horizontal,distal, proximal, etc.), if provided, are relative and provided solelyby way of example and for ease of illustration and discussion and not byway of limitation. Furthermore, where reference is made herein to a listof elements (e.g., elements a, b, such reference is intended to includeany one of the listed elements by itself, any combination of less thanall of the listed elements, and/or a combination of all of the listedelements. Also, as used herein, the terms a, an, and one may each beinterchangeable with the terms at least one and one or more.

We claim:
 1. A knitting apparatus, comprising: a first knitting needle, wherein the first knitting needle defines a first groove extending along a portion of a length of the first knitting needle.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first knitting needle comprises an elongated shaft, wherein the elongated shaft comprises a substantially flat exterior surface, and wherein the first groove is defined in the substantially flat exterior surface.
 3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first knitting needle comprises an elongated shaft, wherein a portion of the elongated shaft comprises a polygonal shape, wherein a first surface of the polygonal shape defines the first groove, and wherein a second surface of the polygonal shape defines a second groove that extends along the portion of the length of the first knitting needle.
 4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first knitting needle comprises an elongated, square shaped shaft, wherein the first groove is defined in a first face of the square shaped shaft, and wherein a second, third, and fourth groove are respectively defined in a second, third, and fourth face of the elongated, square shaped shaft.
 5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first knitting needle further comprises: a distal end having a pointed tip; and a proximal end comprising an object that is wider than a width of an elongated shaft of the first knitting needle.
 6. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a second knitting needle, wherein the second knitting needle defines a second groove extending along a portion of a length of the second knitting needle, wherein the first and second knitting needles are coupled together with a flexible coupler.
 7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the flexible coupler has comprises a non-resilient material.
 8. A knitting system comprising, a first knitting needle comprising an elongated shaft having: a distal end comprising a pointed tip of the first knitting needle; a proximal end; and a first groove defined in an exterior surface of the elongated shaft, wherein the first groove extends from a distal portion of the elongated shaft, proximally along a length of the elongated shaft, and wherein the first groove is configured to receive a pointed tip of a second knitting needle.
 9. The system of claim 8, wherein the first groove is longer than about 2 cm.
 10. The system of claim 8, wherein the elongated shaft defines a second groove that extends from the distal portion of the elongated shaft, proximally along the length of the elongated shaft.
 11. The system of claim 8, wherein: the elongated shaft comprises a four-sided shaft, the first groove is defined in a first side of the four-sided shaft, and a second, third, and fourth groove are respectively defined in a second, third, and fourth side of the four-sided shaft.
 17. The system of claim 8, further comprising the second knitting needle, and wherein the first knitting needle comprises a first distinguishing feature that readily distinguishes the first knitting needle from the second knitting needle.
 13. The apparatus of claim 8, further comprising the second knitting needle, wherein the proximal end of the first knitting needle and a proximal end of the second knitting needle are coupled together via a non-resilient coupler.
 14. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the first groove opens at its distal end to allow the pointed tip of the second knitting needle to slide distally out of the first groove.
 15. A knitting system comprising: a first knitting needle comprising a four-sided, elongated shaft having: a proximal end; a pointed distal end; and a first, second, third, and fourth groove, that each extend from a distal portion, and longitudinally along a length, of the four-sided, elongated shaft, with the first, second, third, and fourth groove respectively being defined in a first, second, third, and fourth face of the four-sided, elongated shaft.
 16. The system of claim 15, further comprising a second knitting needle, wherein the proximal end of the first knitting needle and a proximal end of the second knitting needle are coupled together via a non-resilient coupler.
 17. The system of claim 16, wherein the first knitting needle comprises a first distinguishing feature that readily distinguishes the first knitting needle from the second knitting needle.
 18. The system of claim 16, wherein the first knitting needle comprises a first dominant color, and wherein the second knitting needle comprises a second dominant color that is readily distinguishable from the first dominant color.
 19. The system of claim 15, wherein the first groove opens at its distal end to allow a pointed tip of a second knitting needle to slide distally through and out of the first groove.
 20. The system of claim 15, wherein the proximal end of the first knitting needle an object that is wider than a width of four-sided, elongated shaft of the first knitting needle. 